Casey La Scala’s The Remaining is being released in theaters on September 5th, and Lytherus has been given the opportunity to interview on of the stars of the film, Liz Morgan. Check out her bio and then jump to the interview!

Liz E. Morgan (Sam) – was born on August 30, 1996 in Boston, Massachusetts to parents Jeanne DePasquale Morgan, a former actress, and Jeff Morgan, a trial lawyer. When Liz was 6 years old, she moved to Atlanta, Georgia with her family. It was there that Liz fell in love with acting and specifically the works of William Shakespeare. By her early teens, she had worked with two professional Shakespeare companies in Georgia, the New American Shakespeare Tavern and the Georgia Shakespeare Festival, appearing in productions of A Comedy of Errors, Julius Caesar, and King John.

In 2013, Liz landed her first film role as the edgy teen Sam in the apocalyptic thriller The Remaining, directed by Casey La Scala and co-starring Alexa Vega (Spy Kids), Johnny Pacar, Shaun Sipos, Bryan Dechart, and Italia Ricci.

She has also appeared in commercials, student films, and contemporary theatrical productions, including Little Shop of Horrors, The Women of Lockerbie, Sweeney Todd, The Mystery Plays, and Dearly Departed.

Liz became a Georgia Governor’s Honors Program Finalist in 2013 for acting, an accomplishment that only a tiny fraction of Georgia high school students ever achieve.

When not acting, Liz spends her time singing, playing her guitar, her ukulele and listening to Jazz. She has studied voice at Jan Smith Studios in Atlanta. Liz is represented by Atlanta Models & Talent.

(This interview is the transcript of an audio conversation.)

PJ Carroll: Horror and postapocalyptic horror films are my favorites and this film, The Remaining, looks like it falls into those genres. Honestly, it looks pretty amazing. Would you tell us about the film?

Liz Morgan: It’s about this group of friends who find themselves in the midst of the rapture, the Biblical Rapture, which is the end of the world. It follows their struggle to survive while they are trying to realize what faith is to them. While this is happening, each of them has their own individual conflict that is going on. As the film progresses, the audience gets to see and realize what each character is going through and why they make the choices they do.

PJ Carroll: Sounds amazing. So, in preparation for this interview, I did some research about you (sorry!) and your acting career. It looks like this is your first journey into the horror genre.

Liz Morgan: It’s my first journey into film! It’s the very first film I ever did.

PJ Carroll: Oh wow! So, what was your impression with this being your first film and it being a horror film?

Liz Morgan: I was really excited. When I first got the script, I wasn’t a huge fan of horror movies at that time. I thought it was really ironic because I absolutely couldn’t stand horror movies. I got scared so easily. Reading the script, I was on the edge of my seat. Now, I’m absolutely in love and obsessed with horror movies. Weird change happened there. It was really cool being in a horror movie. I was scared that I was going to be terrified filming it, but it was fun filming all of these demons and horror movie type scenes. Behind the scenes, everyone was cracking jokes about it. I had a lot of fun, and it wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be. I’ve already watched the movie and watching the director Casey La Scala and what his vision has become was so incredible. I knew exactly what would happen, but I was still jumping and screaming a little bit while I watched it.

PJ Carroll: There are so many people tied to this film who have a background in either horror, thrillers, or psychological dramas. People like Alexa Vega (Repo The Genetic Opera), Shawn Sipos (Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D), the producers, and almost everyone else had a tie in their past to the horror genre. What was it like to work with these people and how did they help you?

Liz Morgan: Like I said, this was my first movie ever, and I was scared and nervous going into it. They were all so comforting and gave me so many words of inspiration. They really helped me find who I was as an actor, if that makes sense. They made it so I wasn’t scared to act, but I was still intimidated since, like you said, they have done so much stuff. They had so much knowledge of horror movies and films in general that I didn’t have. It was really cool to meet all these famous people, but they’re not. They are just like people and it was great getting to that realization.

PJ Carroll: That’s a great experience! Previously, you mentioned director Casey La Scala. Personally, I am a huge fan of Donnie Darko. I love that movie.

Liz Morgan: Oh me too! The first time I met him, I fangirled a little bit. It is such a good movie.

PJ Carroll: You’ve acted in and have watched The Remaining. Could you let the audience know if you think this movie will have the same long lasting effect on the horror genre as Donnie Darko has impacted films?

Liz Morgan: I definitely think so. There is this whole new genre coming called faith based horror. I really think this movie will capture this genre completely and make it explode. I know it will make a huge splash in the movie genre. It’s going to be great.

PJ Carroll: I’m loving it more and more. So, what are your future plans? Are you planning on staying with horror movies or where do you want your acting career to go?

Liz Morgan: Well, I’m in my senior year of high school. After I graduate, I want to move to LA. I have an agent there and I’m going to see what happens with that. I would love to be in more horror movies. I want to be in something twisted, because I really like twisted movies. It would be fun to play a dark villain type character in a movie. I just want to act for the rest of my life.

PJ Carroll: Is there anyone in the horror genre you would like to work with?

Liz Morgan: The entire cast of American Horror Story. Everyone who has worked on that show. I love it and I am so excited for the next season. I am such a fan of Jessica Lange. I watch her scenes over and over again to take notes on what she does. She uses her hands in these amazing ways. She touches her face and it makes the scene mean so much more. OK, I’m fangirling and freaking out now so I’m going to stop.

PJ Carroll: So, final question. Is there anything you want to say about the film to get people to run to the theaters to check out the movie?

Liz Morgan: It is definitely a scary movie. If you don’t like being scared, you might not want to go see it. You will be scared, but it so much more than jump scares. It’s a movie with a message. People who go to see it will leave the theaters asking themselves questions about their own lives and about people they know. You will be entertained and you’ll be scared. You’ll have suspense and be thrilled. When you leave, it will change how you live your life.

Go see it. Yay!

PJ Carroll: To me, that is the definition of a great movie.

Liz Morgan: Another cool thing about The Remaining is that is has a Cloverfield feel to it with the handheld cameras.Casey did a hybrid with handheld and still/professional cameras. It isn’t all handheld, but there are specific moments where he decides to use it. It was so smart. It makes the audience feel like they are there and with the characters. It makes the audience feel for the characters. It’s a great, great film. I know it’s hard to believe me since I’m in the movie, but it’s a really good movie.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Liz for allowing me to interview her. This is my first phone interview ever and it was seriously a pleasure talking to Liz. Her thoughts on this film and her thoughts about the horror genre were impressive, and I, for one, will definitely be checking out The Remaining.

Dear Lytherus visitors: Our seven year journey as a fantasy and science fiction blog has come to a (hopefully temporary) end. As of September, we're entering an indefinite hiatus and are moving our operations over to Shurtugal.com, our sister site. There you'll be able to find familiar voices writing book reviews and reporting on the latest fandom news. We're not closing the door on Lytherus for good, as it's a project many of us would like to revisit in the future. For now, we encourage you to head over to Shurtugal.com to continue the adventure. Thanks for a wonderful seven years, and we hope to see you again soon!